Similar projects followed as the firm built water, sewer, electric, and road systems for cities and towns throughout the Midwestern United States, emerging from frontier status.

In February 2011, HDR acquired Cooper Medical, an Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, based firm providing integrated design and construction services for healthcare facilities throughout the U.S.[4] The new alliance, HDR Cooper Medical, will provide a service design and construction delivery model to healthcare clients.

In February 2011, HDR acquired Schiff Associates, a recognized leader in corrosion engineering headquartered in Claremont, California, with offices in Houston, Las Vegas, and San Diego.

[5] The firm provides engineering and consulting services in British Columbia and a number of international locations for hydropower and water resources infrastructure.

In April 2013, HDR acquired Salva Resources, a global provider of technical and commercial services for mining exploration and investment in Brisbane, Australia.

[8] In July 2013, HDR acquired the business and assets of Sharon Greene + Associates, a firm specializing in transportation economics and financial analysis.

[11] In January 2015, HDR acquired the assets of MEI, LLC, a liquid natural gas engineering and consulting firm based in Pooler, Georgia.

HDR sought to add MDG's strengths in facility planning and design to complement its asset life-cycle approach to infrastructure development.

[14] In 2018, HDR expanded its water resources services by acquiring the assets of David Ford Consulting Engineers, a firm based in Sacramento, California.

It expanded into a global company operating in Dubai, India, Australia, Singapore and the US, engaging in both public and private sector development across various fields.

Their practice complements HDR's collaborative, full life cycle approach to infrastructure development and delivery of critical transportation programs in the Southwest region of the United States.

In 2019, advocates in Travis County, TX opposed the construction of a new women's jail, arguing the resources would be better spent on programs to address concerns like addiction and mental health.

[55] Following community pressure, Travis County commissioners indefinitely paused HDR's $4.6 million contract to design the women's jail in June 2021.

The report highlighted HDR's "corporate counterinsurgency" work, especially social media monitoring, to anticipate and disrupt public opposition to projects, including highways built through sacred Indigenous sites and prison and jail construction.